The Candy Perfume Boy’s Great Layering Experiment

The Mad Perfume Scientist

‘Layering’ – the practice of layering two fragrance compositions to create weird and wonderful combinations, has always seemed completely alien to me. I have always enjoyed the fragrances in my collection exactly the way they were created (I wouldn’t have bought them otherwise) and have never felt the need to try and improve or change them by adding something new.

Despite my skepticism, layering seems to be something that a lot of perfume-lovers do and enjoy. Some brands, such as Jo Malone, even actively encourage the practice of layering with their fragrances. These ‘layering’ combinations are designed to enhance the perfume experience, but I can’t help but feel that they are just a cheap ploy with the sole intent of convincing consumers to buy extra bottles.

Despite my skepticism, this layering malarky got me thinking (a dangerous habit, I know); is there any real merit to mixing perfumes? and; Can you actually enhance a perfume by layering it with another? So, in the interest of science I thought that I would conduct a few layering experiments to see whether there is any merit to it, or whether it’s just a bunch of phooey.

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The Candy Perfume Boy’s Best Picks of 2011

Awards night is always a tad emotional…

2011 has been a big year for the perfume industry, it has seen a total of 1200 [1] new perfume releases and as expected with such a high volume of perfumes being unleashed onto the market, it was a mixed bag – some were great, some were good and some were downright terrible. Sifting through the plethora of perfume releases this year has been great fun and for this end of year round-up I have picked out those fragrances that I feel are the very best of 2011, my ‘best picks’ if you will. These fragrances are the ones that deserve to be celebrated for their artistic merit, flair and quality, oh and because they smell good too!

There are a four main categories; Best Feminine, Best Masculine, Best Niche and Best Flanker, each with a winner, and because there were quite a high amount of fragrances worth celebrating this year I have also included a number of runners up for most categories. In addition to the first four categories I have included an extra one entitled ‘The Candy Perfume Boy’s Best Discoveries of 2011’ which celebrates three fragrances that I have discovered and fallen in love with this year.

Before moving on to my ‘Best Picks of 2011’ I would like to thank each and every one of you who reads and supports this blog. As The Candy Perfume Boy is just about to reach 50,000 hits in the next day or so, I must take a moment to reflect on how great this experience has been so far. I truly value everyone who visits and interacts with me on this blog and my absolute highlight of this year has been the interactions and friendships I have formed through The Candy Perfume Boy and Twitter (you all know who you are!). They are as important, if not more so, than the perfumes that have brought us all together.

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Gone, But Not Forgotten Series Part 6: A Long Lost Comic Book Hero – B*Men by Thierry Mugler

“Here we are today, lamenting a long lost comic book hero who was my favourite fragrant superhero – B*Men.”

In the Thierry Mugler universe there used to be two superheroes who defended us perfume-loving civilians against the banality and lack of quality & creativity within the perfume industry. These superheroes were; A*men, whose superpower was the ability to shock and stun any villain with his audacious blend of lavender, mint, cocoa, coffee, patchouli & tar and B*Men, whose superpower was the ability to leave villains in awe of his intriguing, addictive odour.

Unfortunately one of these superheroes was defeated by his arch enemy ‘General Perfume-Consumer’, who knew that the hero’s kryptonite was to ignore him, and with that knowledge the evil villain made it their mission to destroy our beloved hero. So, here we are today, lamenting a long lost comic book hero who was my favourite fragrant superman – B*Men.

B*Men was released in 2004 and followed A*Men (or Angel Men as it sometimes known) as the second superhero themed masculine fragrance from the world-renowned couturier, and un-confirmed extra terrestrial – Thierry Mugler. Whilst it wasn’t presented as a flanker to A*Men, B*Men does showcase Mugler’s gourmand signature and can be seen as a lighter, less extreme version which would appeal to those who like their fragrances slightly less ‘over the top’.

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The Candy Perfume Boy’s Party Season Scent Guide

Lady Gaga’s got the drinks, but does she have the right scent to match that party outfit?

Tis the season to be jolly, or completely merry, or if you’re British – absolutely trashed. The best thing about the holiday season is the many soirées, parties (office or otherwise), dinners and gatherings that we all inevitably get invited to, and for me this is the fun part, because after all the holidays are about seeing friends & family and having fun.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m going out I sometimes spend more time thinking about the fragrance I’m going to wear rather than the clothes. I very often find myself trying to match my fragrance to the outfit that I am wearing as well as the occasion. As far as I am concerned, there is nothing worse than not being able to find something that matches , but fear ye not – The Candy Perfume Boys is here to help you pick the perfect scent for the party season.

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Death by Chocolate – Thierry Mugler Angel Le Goût du Parfum Perfume Review

“This may be death by chocolate but what a way to go…”

Thierry Mugler’s latest collection of limited editions ‘Le Goût du Parfum’ (The Taste of Fragrance) has proved to be one of the best collection of flankers ever released, Mugler has taken the signature of four of his perfumes (Angel, Alien, A*Men and Womanity) and has added a taste enhancer that either adds or amplifies a gourmand facet, this is where haute cuisine meets haute perfumery.

For more on the series please click here.

Angel is Thierry Mugler’s flagship fragrance, she is already infamous for being the first gourmand oriental and one of the first perfumes to use a chocolate note. For Angel Le Goût du Parfum, Mugler has used a taste enhancer of pure cocoa powder (what else?) to emphasise the chocolate notes, the end result promises to be “more gourmand than gourmand” [1] – and it is!

Angel Le Goût du Parfum is a worthy addition to the Angel lineage and whilst it doesn’t replace the original, it does fill a particular void in my collection – a true chocolate fragrance.

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More Foody ‘Fumegasms’ – Thierry Mugler A*Men & Womanity Le Goût du Parfum Perfume Reviews

Last week I tried, and raved about Thierry Mugler’s new Alien Le Goût du Parfum. Since then I’ve had the opportunity to try two more fragrances from the ultra-limited series; A*Men and Womanity (I haven’t had the chance to try Angel properly yet), so I thought I would do a quick follow up post on how they smell. Are you ready for another ‘Fumegasm’?

In case you missed it, the idea behind Le Goût du Parfum , as mentioned in my last post, is:

The concept behind Le Goût du Parfum (The Taste of Fragrance) is simple – take the already bold, and mostly gourmand structures of four Thierry Mugler scents (Angel, Alien, Womanity and A*Men) and add a ‘Taste Enhancer’ to each. Le Goût du Parfum creates “a genuine parallel between Haute Cuisine and Haute Parfumerie.” To achieve this parallel Mugler enlisted leading Michelin-starred chef Hélène Darroze to create an “entirely Muglerian Meal” based on these four new limited editions.

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Eat Me – Thierry Mugler Alien Le Goût du Parfum Perfume Review

“Pure Fumegasm”

I’ve said before that Thierry Mugler is one brand that always thinks intelligently about their flankers and their latest series of limited editions ‘Le Goût du Parfum’ is absolutely no exception to this rule.

The concept behind Le Goût du Parfum (The Taste of Fragrance) is simple – take the already bold, and mostly gourmand structures of four Thierry Mugler scents (Angel, Alien, Womanity and A*Men) and add a ‘Taste Enhancer’ to each. Le Goût du Parfum creates “a genuine parallel between Haute Cuisine and Haute Parfumerie.” To achieve this parallel Mugler enlisted leading Michelin-starred chef Hélène Darroze to create an “entirely Muglerian Meal” based on these four new limited editions.

WARNING: THIS POST WILL MAKE YOU HUNGRY

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Intergalactic Jasmine – Thierry Mugler Alien Perfume Review

“If you don’t like jasmine then you are probably going to need to put on your Space Suit, a Close Encounter of the Third Kind with this Alien may leave you feeling completely overwhelmed.”

I remember Alien’s release well, in 2005 I had just started my love affair with perfumes and one perfume I had fallen for big time was Angel by Thierry Mugler, so the news of a brand new Mugler release was big news for me. My excitement grew even more when I heard the perfume was to be named ‘Alien’, has there ever been a more perfect name for a fragrance? I think not!

Alien also holds a special resonance with me because it was that year I met my lovely boyfriend (technically he’s my fiancée but I don’t like the word) and Alien was the perfume I wore when we first met. He probably doesn’t remember the perfume that I wore, but I do and that makes it all the more special to me.

On Thursday I will be reviewing the latest incarnation of Alien, ‘Alien Le Goût du Parfum‘ so I feel it’s only fitting to give the original a proper review, after all Alien is one of my all time favourites.

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My Very Own Narnia – The Capsule Wardrobe

Last weekend, after much nagging from my long-suffering partner, I decided to have a tidy of my perfume collection and samples box. Now, anyone who knows me well will be fully aware that tidying is not really something I do very often, in fact, it is something that I avoid at all costs.

Anyway, during my tidy up, I totalled up the number of perfume bottles in my collection and I was genuinely shocked when I came to the nice round number of 120. “How can I have so much perfume, I never feel like I have enough choice” I thought, “Do I really need so much?” and “Do I feel like I don’t know what to wear because I have too much choice?”

This led me to think in depth about my collection of fragrances, what would I choose if I were to reduce its size considerably?

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The Daytime Angel – Thierry Mugler Angel Eau de Toilette Perfume Review

“Angel Eau de Toilette is still a diva but she is Angel before she puts on her drag queen make up and high heels, she is the daytime Angel, just as fabulous and dramatic but less likely to throw a tantrum.”

When I first read the news that the Thierry Mugler brand was releasing an Eau de Toilette version of their infamous flagship fragrance Angel, my first thought was ‘I’m surprised they haven’t done one already.’ Well it’s taken nearly 20 years, but Mugler has finally decided to launch a lighter version of the heavy oriental gourmand.

Along with the launch of the new Eau de Toilette, and it’s fabulous new ‘comet bottle’ Mugler has created a brand new television and print campaign for both versions, starring Eva Mendes. I’m probably not supposed to say this, because I like Naomi Watts as an actress, but she just didn’t suit being the face of Angel, so I’m very glad that the sultry Eva Mendes is now fronting the campaign for my favourite Diva.

Now, Angel fans, I can sense that you are perhaps feeling a little uneasy and even slightly sceptical about this new release, after all why would you want a lighter version of Angel? She’s perfect just as she is. Well if you’re anything like me, you love Angel but on some days she’s just a little bit too much, and you can’t be doing with all of her diva antics all day long, every single day. You’ll be relieved to know that Angel Eau de Toilette is faithful to the original and what Mugler has done is create a more ‘everyday’ version of Angel that can be worn to the office/school/park/(insert everyday place here) without terrifying people

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